3. Request a ride through the app and ride for free to any destination (with two ride values of up to RM30 each).

In recent weeks, we've relied completely on Uber to take us all across KL & Selangor, visiting restaurants from the city centre to the suburbs. Riding with Uber's drivers has been a brilliant & beneficial experience - so here's why we're endorsing Uber as the way to travel to your next eating escapade.

1. Uber is reliable.

When you're really hungry, or when you're heading for a business lunch appointment or for dinner with friends, the last thing you want is to be late. Rain or shine, you'll find Uber drivers all over the Klang Valley throughout the day (& all the way till the wee hours) - so a pick-up should only be a few minutes away.

It just takes several seconds to summon a friendly driver through Uber's app; once the ride is confirmed, you'll be able to track the driver's movements en route to you. Then simply hop into the car when it arrives & you'll be whisked to your restaurant!

2. Uber puts you in the best mood for a nice meal.

Uber makes for comfortable rides - sit back & relax, without needing to spend energy on driving yourself through KL's traffic. Take a nap. Or get the driver to play your favourite radio station (or connect to your Spotify account for your favourite tunes). Drinking water is available. You'll arrive feeling refreshed & recharged, ready to focus on your meal - with enough energy to take as many Instagram photos as you want of the restaurant & its food!

3. Uber makes parking no longer a problem

Usually, we dread visiting restaurants in neighbourhoods like Subang's SS15, Damansara Uptown & Kota Damansara, since parking's a never-ending problem there. But with Uber, there's no reason to avoid the many excellent eateries in those areas, or your favourite cafes in shopping malls & office buildings where parking can cost a lot. Uber can drop you at your restaurant's doorstep & pick you up when you're ready to go - no need to waddle all the way back to the parking lot on a full belly!

4. Uber gives you extra time to enjoy your meal.

Sometimes during lunchtime, we check our inbox on our phones & sigh at the work-related emails that keep streaming in. This can stress us out & make us feel like leaving to get back on the job - which means no dessert (boo!). But we've found that Uber makes us more efficient & saves us time. Without having to drive, we can spend time in the passenger seat replying emails, making phone calls & being productive, freeing us up for a precious extra 15 minutes of having our cake & eating it too!

5. Uber gives you the human connection to discover where to eat.

Most Uber drivers will welcome you with a cheerful greeting when you step in, but they'll leave you to your thoughts after that - unless you feel like chatting. If you do, you may find your driver to be a treasure trove of valuable information about gastronomic gems you haven't discovered yet. Uber drivers come from all over town - so they might very well be able to direct you to your next great food find. Thanks, Vincent - we may just check out that curry laksa in OUG!

6. Uber gets you back home safely.

At the end of the night, you may have spent more time than expected catching up with your friends. Or you may have enjoyed more than one or two glasses of wine or cocktails. We've been there, & Uber has brought us safely back home. Rides are GPS-tracked, so you can share the status of your trip with your loved ones for them to pinpoint your exact location at all times & track the entire progress of your journey from restaurant to home.

7. Uber can be a cheap - or even free - way to reach your restaurant.

There are always great promotions going on at Uber - for a fortnight until 30 June 2015, for example, Uber offered users free rides worth up to RM30 each, any time between 4pm & 9pm, for Ramadan. There have also been lunchtime deals for free rides from time to time.

Now, Eat Drink KL is teaming up with Uber to take restaurant lovers on new adventures across KL & Selangor!

If you haven't used Uber yet, it's time to begin! For new users, just follow the steps below to redeem free rides:

1. Download the Uber app from the App Store, Play Store or Windows Store - and register your Uber account.

3. Request a ride through the app and ride for free to any destination (with two ride values of up to RM30 each).

There are of course many more reasons to use Uber to get to restaurants. We know Uber will keep surprising us; we're excited to continue on our journey with them! Many thanks to the Uber Malaysia team for being the gracious benefactor for our rides.

BWB's other key attraction: Comfort fare in bowls. Check out the Bare Knuckle Don (RM18), which spotlights a 72-hour, slow-braised pork knuckle, prepared in a Chinese kitchen in Kepong, paired with preserved veggies, onsen egg & a scoop of rice.

The fall-off-the-bone knuckle is also the cornerstone of BWB's satisfactory ramen (RM22), soaked in broth that's sweetly savoury, but not too rich or cloying. BTW, BWB's name is a mystery, as far as what the acronym stands for. Bring Wine, Babe?

The ox tongue don, with succulent slices of tongue spiced up with bits of chillies, isn't on the official menu, but ask for it & you'll receive. You can also go simple with a frills-free bowl of garlic fried rice (RM7, like we did) or add foie gras for an extra RM15.

There's only ice cream for dessert, but 'only' might not be the most suitable description for ice cream that comes in premium flavours like Truffle & Chocolate Bailey's (RM15 each). Wine is available by both the bottle (RM145 for a Shiraz) & the glass.

Every restaurant on this app rewards users with a 6 percent discount, instantly & conveniently, everyday, all day long.

In return, users share photos of their experiences at these eateries, creating a new community of restaurant lovers.

For every transaction, at least RM0.20 will be channelled to a charity of the month.

Stay up to date: The Eat Drink KL newsletter is sent by email to subscribers every Monday; it's the Klang Valley's foremost weekly round-up of new restaurant openings, F&B promotions & other tasty tidbits.

Note to subscribers on Gmail: The newsletter will be in the Promotions folder of your inbox.

Check out the latest edition of Eat Drink KL: 100 Favourites, with 100 recommended restaurants for May-August 2015. This eBook is available to read or download at this link: http://eatdrinkkl.cld.bz/2015

Buckle your seatbelts: Eat Drink KL is partnering with Uber to take restaurant lovers on new adventures across KL & Selangor!

If you haven't used Uber yet, it's time to begin! For new users, just follow the steps below to redeem free rides:

1. Download the Uber app from the App Store, Play Store or Windows Store - and register your Uber account.

Sunday, June 28, 2015

Talk about a throwback: Taking inspiration from the Greenwich Village coffee house that became a focal point for folk music in 1960s New York, Bukit Damansara's new Gaslight Cafe is an atmospheric venue that seeks to capture the essence of the era when Bob Dylan first warned of battles outside ragin' & old roads rapidly agin'.

Gaslight Cafe is a real refuge from the modern world - hidden in a second-floor lot in Plaza Damansara, this is a shadowy space where vinyl LPs (Peter, Paul And Mary; Joan Baez; even Nick Drake) occupy a place of pride alongside vintage portraits of Simon & Garfunkel. There's also a book exchange section, & naturally, a corner where guitar-strumming musicians perform & poets hold court on some nights. We'd love to see a screening of Inside Llewyn Davis here someday.

The menu is modest but enjoyable - Gaslight's founder Johann Sultan, the singer-songwriter of Malaysian indie band The Cotton Field Scarecrowes, makes a mean 'moonshine' - Irish coffee (RM18) actually - & very decent Old Fashioned (RM20). Bring your own wine; corkage is RM30. Simple warm meals may be available eventually (Johann promises an all-day Big Breakfast), but for now, the 'healthy biscotti' - made with ingredients like almonds, hazelnuts & seeds - are a delicious snack (RM3). Coffee & tea, chips & nuts are offered too. Nice vibes here & a concept we admire - this is a cafe worth checking out.

Every restaurant on this app rewards users with a 6 percent discount, instantly & conveniently, everyday, all day long.

In return, users share photos of their experiences at these eateries, creating a new community of restaurant lovers.

For every transaction, at least RM0.20 will be channelled to a charity of the month.

Stay up to date: The Eat Drink KL newsletter is sent by email to subscribers every Monday; it's the Klang Valley's foremost weekly round-up of new restaurant openings, F&B promotions & other tasty tidbits.

Note to subscribers on Gmail: The newsletter will be in the Promotions folder of your inbox.

Check out the latest edition of Eat Drink KL: 100 Favourites, with 100 recommended restaurants for May-August 2015. This eBook is available to read or download at this link: http://eatdrinkkl.cld.bz/2015

Buckle your seatbelts: Eat Drink KL is partnering with Uber to take restaurant lovers on new adventures across KL & Selangor!

If you haven't used Uber yet, it's time to begin! For new users, just follow the steps below to redeem free rides:

1. Download the Uber app from the App Store, Play Store or Windows Store - and register your Uber account.